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| "Remembering Amanda" © 2010 ~ watercolor by Carol E Fairbanks |
"Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future."
~ Paul Boese
A Foundation for the Future
When I heard the story of a blind native American woman, Amanda De-Cuys, who was forced by the U.S army soldiers, to leave her daughter at Coos Bay and march, with dozens of members of the Coos and Lower Umpqua tribes to a reservation in Yachats, I felt dismayed. This was still another injustice, in addition to the many I learned of when I lived in Colorado, against an original people who were native to this country of ours. Forced to leave her home, the barefoot Amanda walked about 80 miles along a trail of rough, ragged, volcanic rock to the Alsea Sub-agency, where she and many others were interred. In his journal, Army Corporal Royal Bensell, who accompanied them, wrote, "Amanda, who is blind, tore her feet horribly over these ragged rocks, leaving blood sufficient to track her by."
The life at the sub-agency, where they were brought, was extremely difficult for the Coos and Lower Umpqua natives, that had been unjustly driven from their homes in 1864. Since they were hunter and gatherers, they were not prepared and lacked the skills to cultivate and grow crops within the small confines of the reservation, as the U.S. army expected them to. Historical statistics show that about 300, approximately half of the "Siwash" (coastal natives) died in just ten years at the Alsea Sub-agency. There is no record of what happened to Amanda.
This story is not only the torture and murder of Native American people, but is also an account of the murdering of their culture. Even though that account evokes anger and sadness, and rightly so, no amount of blaming and finding fault will ever change the past or repair the effects of that outrage that might exist, even yet today. What is one to do with such a sorrowful memory? How can we "cleanse" our land of such hatred and bigotry?
The people of Yachats have found a wonderful way to remember and help heal the pain that took place in that tragedy in 1864. In the midst of the beauty of the coastal woods overlooking the timeless waves of the Pacific Ocean, they blazed a trail in honor of Amanda and the other native people that suffered the terrible loss of their homes. It started out to be a nice path to the coastal summit of Cape Perpetua and evolved into the 3.2 mile Amanda Trail under the leadership and work of Lloyd Collett, a forest ranger who initiated the project in the 1970's. Later Joanne and Norman Kittel, with their donation of land, expanded the trail to continue to the northern edge of Yachats.
The Amanda Trail, which commemorates the memory of Amanda and her people with a beautiful stone statue, was dedicated in 2009 and continues to be worked on by many volunteers. David Petrie, cultural director of the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siulaw Indians says, "This community has opened the door to finding common ground between two cultures in a very respectful way." Joanne Kittel says one of the most important goals in building the Amanda Trail, "Was to tell the truth. It's as important as getting the trail completed, if not more important." Kittel feels that ,"This story is not an aberration of Indian history; it is a microcosm of what happened all over North America." She believes that in speaking the truth about what happened, the Amanda Trail has become a symbol of those historic events.
And hiking this trail, marked with those memories of Amanda and her people, gives all people an opportunity to contemplate those events and, maybe even, help to build a consciousness for more compassion and respect for all people. Visitors come from all over to walk the trail and leave gifts at Amanda's statue. Kittel says, "They play music, meditate and pray." When I hiked the Amanda Trail and walked across the bridge, where the statue of Amanda proudly stands upon a large stone tear, I felt Amanda's sorrow. But I also experienced hope in this pristine natural area that reveals a history that must never be repeated.
At the gathering of the dedication of the trail, Chief Warren Brainard of the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians offered this prayer - "May this day be a journey of the heart, a quest of the spirit, and a calming of the soul." And so forgiveness is enlarging the capacity our hearts to care, while ensuring a better understanding of one another. Along with building a trail that takes you along the most beautiful scenery in this country, we are also laying the foundation for a better future.....one where the rights and value of all people are honored.
The life at the sub-agency, where they were brought, was extremely difficult for the Coos and Lower Umpqua natives, that had been unjustly driven from their homes in 1864. Since they were hunter and gatherers, they were not prepared and lacked the skills to cultivate and grow crops within the small confines of the reservation, as the U.S. army expected them to. Historical statistics show that about 300, approximately half of the "Siwash" (coastal natives) died in just ten years at the Alsea Sub-agency. There is no record of what happened to Amanda.
This story is not only the torture and murder of Native American people, but is also an account of the murdering of their culture. Even though that account evokes anger and sadness, and rightly so, no amount of blaming and finding fault will ever change the past or repair the effects of that outrage that might exist, even yet today. What is one to do with such a sorrowful memory? How can we "cleanse" our land of such hatred and bigotry?
The people of Yachats have found a wonderful way to remember and help heal the pain that took place in that tragedy in 1864. In the midst of the beauty of the coastal woods overlooking the timeless waves of the Pacific Ocean, they blazed a trail in honor of Amanda and the other native people that suffered the terrible loss of their homes. It started out to be a nice path to the coastal summit of Cape Perpetua and evolved into the 3.2 mile Amanda Trail under the leadership and work of Lloyd Collett, a forest ranger who initiated the project in the 1970's. Later Joanne and Norman Kittel, with their donation of land, expanded the trail to continue to the northern edge of Yachats.
The Amanda Trail, which commemorates the memory of Amanda and her people with a beautiful stone statue, was dedicated in 2009 and continues to be worked on by many volunteers. David Petrie, cultural director of the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siulaw Indians says, "This community has opened the door to finding common ground between two cultures in a very respectful way." Joanne Kittel says one of the most important goals in building the Amanda Trail, "Was to tell the truth. It's as important as getting the trail completed, if not more important." Kittel feels that ,"This story is not an aberration of Indian history; it is a microcosm of what happened all over North America." She believes that in speaking the truth about what happened, the Amanda Trail has become a symbol of those historic events.
And hiking this trail, marked with those memories of Amanda and her people, gives all people an opportunity to contemplate those events and, maybe even, help to build a consciousness for more compassion and respect for all people. Visitors come from all over to walk the trail and leave gifts at Amanda's statue. Kittel says, "They play music, meditate and pray." When I hiked the Amanda Trail and walked across the bridge, where the statue of Amanda proudly stands upon a large stone tear, I felt Amanda's sorrow. But I also experienced hope in this pristine natural area that reveals a history that must never be repeated.
At the gathering of the dedication of the trail, Chief Warren Brainard of the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians offered this prayer - "May this day be a journey of the heart, a quest of the spirit, and a calming of the soul." And so forgiveness is enlarging the capacity our hearts to care, while ensuring a better understanding of one another. Along with building a trail that takes you along the most beautiful scenery in this country, we are also laying the foundation for a better future.....one where the rights and value of all people are honored.
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| "An Offering to Amanda" © 2011 ~ photo by Carol E Fairbanks |
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| "A Healing Place" © 2011 ~ photo by Carol E Fairbanks |
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